NT texts inspired outside the protestant canon

The Liturgist · Saturday at 8:58 PM

samaus123456789 said:
Here is my list of NT texts outside the protestant canon that are inspired.

There is no “Protestant Canon” of New Testament text. 100% of Christian churches agree on the New Testament canon, which was first elucidated in its present form with no additions or omissions, by St. Athanasius of Alexandria, in his 39th Paschal Encyclical in 367 AD.

This work allowed for the reading of the Shepherd of Hermas and what is either the Didache or more likely the Didascalia for catechesis while denying its canonical status (additionally St. Athanasius rejected the canonical status of several OT books later accepted as canonical, most notably Esther (which Martin Luther wished to omit from the OT canon), Wisdom, Ecclesiasticus (Sirach), Judith and Tobit, while including Baruch as protocanon; his OT canon was never widely accepted, even in the Alexandrian church being replaced by what is basically the EO canon among both Copts and Greek Orthodox, but his New Testament canon was quickly adopted by the churches in Jerusalem, Rome, Constantinople and Antioch, and later the Syriac Orthodox added 2 Peter, 2 John, 3 John, Jude and Revelation (the Apocalypse of St. John) to the Peshitta, these having been missing from the original 22 book translation; the translated books taken from a later translation by St. Thomas of Harqel, also used by the Maronites; these books were not immediately accepted by the Assyrian Church of the East, but nowadays are, although they are not part of their lectionary and thus are not read in the Divine Liturgy.

Martin Luther for his part tried to delete Jude, James, Hebrews and Revelation, and did manage to push them to the end of his German Bible translation, where they became “the Antilegomenna”, but his attempts to remove them were blocked by his colleagues, who applied wise restraint and prevented Luther from making an error, for indeed any modern church leader who thinks they know more than St. Athanasius with regards to what should or should not be in the New Testament I find suspect.

By the way, some people might scoff at the seeming unimportance of Philemon, owing to its small size, but such an attitude is to their loss; indeed online Wendigoon, a Christian YouTuber from Tennessee who mainly does videos relating to horror-related novels and folklore, did a lovely video on Philemon which was a charming, uncontroversial look at this beautiful work of scripture which, like Mere Christianity by CS Lewis, is the sort of thing one could commend to anyone (insofar as Wendigoon very subtly spreads the Gospel through the most unlikely of videos I greatly admire his work).

Again it is not tedious to speak of the [books] of the New Testament. These are, the four Gospels, according to Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Afterwards, the Acts of the Apostles and Epistles (called Catholic), seven, viz. of James, one; of Peter, two; of John, three; after these, one of Jude. In addition, there are fourteen Epistles of Paul, written in this order. The first, to the Romans; then two to the Corinthians; after these, to the Galatians; next, to the Ephesians; then to the Philippians; then to the Colossians; after these, two to the Thessalonians, and that to the Hebrews; and again, two to Timothy; one to Titus; and lastly, that to Philemon. And besides, the Revelation of John.

6. These are fountains of salvation, that they who thirst may be satisfied with the living words they contain. In these alone is proclaimed the doctrine of godliness. Let no man add to these, neither let him take ought from these. For concerning these the Lord put to shame the Sadducees, and said, 'You err, not knowing the Scriptures.' And He reproved the Jews, saying, 'Search the Scriptures, for these are they that testify of Me Matthew 22:29; John 5:39.'

7. But for greater exactness I add this also, writing of necessity; that there are other books besides these not indeed included in the Canon, but appointed by the Fathers to be read by those who newly join us, and who wish for instruction in the word of godliness. The Wisdom of Solomon, and the Wisdom of Sirach, and Esther, and Judith, and Tobit, and that which is called the Teaching of the Apostles, and the Shepherd. But the former, my brethren, are included in the Canon, the latter being [merely] read; nor is there in any place a mention of apocryphal writings. But they are an invention of heretics, who write them when they choose, bestowing upon them their approbation, and assigning to them a date, that so, using them as ancient writings, they may find occasion to lead astray the simple.

The Liturgist · Saturday at 9:07 PM

ViaCrucis said:
Oh, the Gospel of Barnabas absolutely is a late medieval/early modern forgery that clearly wears its Muslim inspiration on its sleeve.
But according to the standard you've already set, since it claims to be written by Barnabas then it must be written by Barnabas.

When I asked for evidence that the Protoevangelium of James was actually written by James your response was that it claims to be. Well, the Gospel of Barnabas claims to be written by Barnabas.

If we can't rely on the witness of the Church, or on scholarly analysis, and all we can go by is what the text claims for itself--then regardless of the fact that the Gospel of Barnabas appears very late in the early modern period and its clear internal evidence of Muslim doctrinal bias, then we must accept it as genuine. That's the standard you personally have established here.

It's not my standard. That's your standard.

Very true; the idea that the “Gospel” of Barnabas is inspired is grossly offensive; the work is entirely incompatible with Christianity and is known to be an Islamic forgery, indeed if memory serves it references as such.

Regarding the Protoevangelion of James, in the Orthodox Church we do not regard it as canonical, although most of what it says we agree with; we rather regard it as an attempt to create a scriptural book around the existing Feast of the Entry of the Theotokos which we celebrate every year on the 21st of November or the 4th of December (Julian), which I believe is doctrinally important; in it the Orthodox affirms the Theotokos was immaculate - without affirming the innovative doctrine of the “Immaculate conception” which would be superfluous to our hamartiology, which is based on the refutation of Pelagius by St. John Cassian, which was historically more popular and mainstream than the refutation of St. Augustine, who we also venerate; both saints get a feast day (St. John has the distinct honor of getting a feast day on February 29th, which means for three out of four years in those churches on the Julian calendar like the parish I prefer to attend, his canon is read at Compline on the 28th rather than at Matins on the 29th, otherwise there is no real difference; the scripture lessons for his feast are if memory serves more or less what you would expect based on the General Menaion, which contains the prototype services for each type of feast (for example, most Marian feasts have the same Gospel and Epistle read at the Divine Liturgy, and the same Old Testament lections, with some exceptions).

Importantly, we do not read the Protoevangelion in any liturgical service; if every copy disappeared in a cloud of smoke it would have no impact on Orthodox faith or praxis. The content it contains is essentially a paraphrase of the text in the Synaxaria (the Eastern equivalent of what the Romans call a Martyrology), which we believe is older and more authentic anyway.

The Liturgist · Saturday at 9:14 PM

ViaCrucis said:
I'm not the one who decides what is or isn't divinely inspired Scripture. The Bible is not subject to me, I'm subject to the Bible.

Strictly speaking, that’s a tautological argument; it would be more accurate to say the Church decided on the BIble and the contents of the New Testament are part of the Tradition which Anglicans and Lutherans and other Magisterial Protestants receive without compromising the Sola Scriptura principle; this being the tradition St. Paul speaks of in 1 Corinthians 11:2 and 2 Thessalonians 2:15 and 2:37, the deposit of faith handed down from the Apostles.

The only reason we have a canon is because of two events in the late first and early second century: the false canon of Marcion of Sinope, who tried to deny the canonicity of the Old Testament and most of the New, aside from his modified versions of the Gospel according to Luke and certain Pauline epistles, and the deluge of psuedepigrapha authored by sinister heretical sects, which range from corrupted versions of Synaptic content, such as the Gospel of Thomas, to progressively more problematic works like the Gospel of Truth, Gospel of Mary, Gospel of Philip and so on, and continue to works such as the Infancy Gospel of Thomas and the Gospel of Barnabas and the Gospel of Judas, which are utterly revolting. These works were what St. Athanasius condemned as apocrypha, and likewise were condemned by St. Gelasius and everyone else in authority.

But it was St. Athanasius, who also was instrumental in the Nicene Creed, and from whose writings the Athanasian Creed is derived, although he did not personally author it; I prefer to regard the revised Nicene Creed adopted at Constantinople in 381 as the Athanasian Creed, but the later document is important, Quincunque Vult, and I do accept it as valid - in its Orthodox form (sans the filioque); we include it in our Psalters and other prayer books, although it is not used liturgically, except perhaps among the Western Rite Orthodox. Certainly it could stand to be used more; I like the customs of having it recited at Prime (the First Hour, part of the cycle of daily prayers) and on Trinity Sunday.

The Liturgist · Saturday at 9:22 PM

ARBITER01 said:
- Any text that is considered to be possibly inspired will not disagree with the rest of canon. It will not create a contradiction.

- Any text that is considered to be possibly inspired will have the imprint of The Holy Spirit in it and create a quickening effect when read.

The former is an objective test, whereas the latter is subjective.

For example, I feel a quickening effect when I read many books that many Protestants insist are not inspired, for example, the Wisdom of Solomon, indeed, Wisdom chapter 2, with its very precise Christological prophecy, is one of my favorite texts in the entire Old Testament, and if we look at the Orthodox lectionary, Wisdom is more important in terms of how frequently it appears in the lectionary (for instance, at every service of Confessors, Hierarchs and so on) than some books we would agree with Protestants are canonical.

Also the Septuagint versions of Esther and Daniel I feel are more inspired than the Masoretic versions; likewise the Septuagint Psalter is more obviously spirit filled; Psalm 96 v. 5 tells me nothing I do not know, but the LXX equivalent, Psalm 95 v 5 “The gods of the gentiles are demons” - that’s important to note; also the Septuagint is preferentially quoted over the MT in the New Testament.

The best approach in my view is simply to use the New Testament canon which all Christian churches agreed on, the canon of St. Athanasius, the 27 books we all know and love, whereas regarding the Old Testament, since no consensus ever formed on these (there are minor differences between the Catholic, Greek Orthodox, Russian Orthodox, Coptic Orthodox, Syriac Orthodox canons and major differences between their canons and the Ethiopian, and there is also the Anglican canon, basically, what one finds in a complete King James Version, tolerance is desirable, since there is no ecumenical standard agreed to by everyone, but churches with differences in canon are able to get along, even in the same communion, even in the same church, for the Ethiopian Orthodox Church was until the mid 20th century part of the Coptic Orthodox Church, with three bishops, the senior-most one called the Abune, members of the Holy Synod of Alexandria, presided over but not dominated by the Pope of Alexandria, who is, like the Roman Pope once was before the Great Schism in 1054, Primus Inter Pares - first among equals, but the former has a distinct canon written in Ge’ez whereas the latter uses what amounts to the Greek Orthodox canon with regards to the Old Testament). Since the mid 20th century this church has been autocephalous, and since 1994 the Eritrean Orthodox Church has also been autocephalous (this term means ecclesiastically independent), but both churches are members of the Oriental Orthodox communion along with the Copts, Syriacs (Assyrians and Aramaeans), Armenians and the Mar Thoma Christians of Kerala, India.

ARBITER01 · Sunday at 12:36 AM

The Liturgist said:
The former is an objective test, whereas the latter is subjective.

I view them as Spiritual tests.

The Liturgist said:
For example, I feel a quickening effect when I read many books that many Protestants insist are not inspired, for example, the Wisdom of Solomon, indeed, Wisdom chapter 2, with its very precise Christological prophecy, is one of my favorite texts in the entire Old Testament, and if we look at the Orthodox lectionary, Wisdom is more important in terms of how frequently it appears in the lectionary (for instance, at every service of Confessors, Hierarchs and so on) than some books we would agree with Protestants are canonical.

Also the Septuagint versions of Esther and Daniel I feel are more inspired than the Masoretic versions; likewise the Septuagint Psalter is more obviously spirit filled; Psalm 96 v. 5 tells me nothing I do not know, but the LXX equivalent, Psalm 95 v 5 “The gods of the gentiles are demons” - that’s important to note; also the Septuagint is preferentially quoted over the MT in the New Testament.

The best approach in my view is simply to use the New Testament canon which all Christian churches agreed on, the canon of St. Athanasius, the 27 books we all know and love, whereas regarding the Old Testament, since no consensus ever formed on these (there are minor differences between the Catholic, Greek Orthodox, Russian Orthodox, Coptic Orthodox, Syriac Orthodox canons and major differences between their canons and the Ethiopian, and there is also the Anglican canon, basically, what one finds in a complete King James Version, tolerance is desirable, since there is no ecumenical standard agreed to by everyone, but churches with differences in canon are able to get along, even in the same communion, even in the same church, for the Ethiopian Orthodox Church was until the mid 20th century part of the Coptic Orthodox Church, with three bishops, the senior-most one called the Abune, members of the Holy Synod of Alexandria, presided over but not dominated by the Pope of Alexandria, who is, like the Roman Pope once was before the Great Schism in 1054, Primus Inter Pares - first among equals, but the former has a distinct canon written in Ge’ez whereas the latter uses what amounts to the Greek Orthodox canon with regards to the Old Testament). Since the mid 20th century this church has been autocephalous, and since 1994 the Eritrean Orthodox Church has also been autocephalous (this term means ecclesiastically independent), but both churches are members of the Oriental Orthodox communion along with the Copts, Syriacs (Assyrians and Aramaeans), Armenians and the Mar Thoma Christians of Kerala, India.

Some of the intertestamental period texts could have agreement with the New Covenant texts, but some of the dead sea scrolls texts and others could also.

There's a whole plethora of material to choose from. GOD is helping me write out my own bible currently, and I'll certainly look as these books once I finish up the NT, but that will be a while yet.

keras · Sunday at 3:06 AM

Here is a NT text omitted from our Bibles.
Acts of the Apostles. The missing Chapter 29:

230 years ago, this missing chapter of the Book of Acts, written in the same Greek as the rest of the New Testament, was found in the archives of the Sultan, in Istanbul by the Frenchman; C.S. Sonnini. It was translated and printed in 1801.

There are other proofs of Pauls visit to Britain, in the writings of the Early Church Fathers and in many oral traditions of England.

Note that in the last two verses of Acts 28:30-31, Paul was free in Rome and he stayed there for two full years. Then......nothing more?

The Bible does not tell us the time and manner of Paul’s death, but we can be sure, he didn’t just retire and tend his garden! If he was beheaded by Nero, as some speculate, surely the Bible would have told us that. Anyway beheading wasn’t Nero’s style. No; Acts infers a departure from Rome....to where?

Acts of the Apostles 29:1 And Paul full of the blessings of Christ and abounding in the Spirit, departed out of Rome, determining to go to Spain, for he had for a long time purposed to go there and was minded also to go from there into Britain.

2/ For he had heard in Phoenicia that certain of the children of Israel, at the time of the Assyrian captivity, had escaped by sea to ‘the isles afar off’, as spoken by the prophet, [Jeremiah 31:10] and called by the Romans, Britain.

3/ As the Lord Commanded, the Gospel was to be preached to the Gentiles and to the lost sheep of the House of Israel. Matthew 15:24

4/ And no man hindered Paul, for he testified boldly of Jesus before the Tribunes and among the people. He took with him certain of the brethren who were with him in Rome. They took ship at Ostium and having the winds fair, were brought safely into a port of Spain.

5/ Many people gathered from the towns and the hill country, for they had heard of the conversion of Paul and the many miracles he had done.

6/ Paul preached mightily in Spain and a great multitude believed and became Christian, for they perceived that he was an Apostle sent by God.

7/ Then Paul and his company departed out of Spain, finding a ship in Armorica sailing to Britain, they went on it and passing along the south coast arrived in a port called Raphinus. [Portsmouth]

8/ Now when it was noised abroad that the Apostle had landed, great multitudes of the inhabitants met him and they treated Paul courteously as he entered their town by the East gate and lodged in the home of a Hebrew, one of his own kin. Romans 16:13

9/ Then they travelled to the main town of Britain, [Londinium] Paul stood upon Mount Lud, [Ludgate hill, where St Pauls Cathedral now stands] and the crowds thronged in Broadway as he preached Christ to them and many believed the Word and the Testimony of Jesus.

10/ In the evening the holy Ghost fell upon Paul and he prophesied, saying: ‘Behold, in the last days the God of peace shall dwell in this place and the citizens shall be numbered, then in the seventh numbering of the people, their eyes shall be opened and the glory of their inheritance will shine forth before them. Nations shall come up to worship on the mount that testifies to the patience and longsuffering of the servants of the Lord’.

11/ And in the latter days, new tidings of the Gospel shall issue forth out of Jerusalem and the hearts of the people will rejoice. Behold fountains will be opened and there will be no more plagues.

12/ In those days there shall be wars and rumours of wars and a king shall rise up, his Sword will be the healing of the nations, his Peace-making shall abide and the glory of his kingdom a wonder to the world. [The Millennium Kingdom of Jesus]

13/ Then some of the Druids came to Paul privately and showed to Paul by their rites and ceremonies that they were descended from Israel, who had escaped from their bondage in the land of Egypt. The Apostle believed them and he gave them the kiss of peace.

13/ Paul stayed in his lodging for three months, preaching the Gospel continually and confirming those in the faith.

15/ After this Paul and his friends sailed from there to Atium in Gaul. [France]

16/ There Paul preached in the Roman garrisons and among the people, exhorting all to repent and to confess their sins.

17/ There came to him some of the Belgae, [North Europeans] to enquire of him about this new doctrine and about the man Jesus. Paul opened his heart to them and told them all that had befallen him and how Christ Jesus had come into the world to save sinners. They departed, pondering among themselves the things they had heard.

18/ After much preaching and toil, Paul and his labourers passed into Helvetia, [Switzerland] and came to Mount Pontius Pilate, where he who had condemned Jesus had dashed himself down headlong, so perishing miserably.

19/ Then a torrent gushed out of the mountain and washed his broken body into a lake.

20/ Paul stretched forth his hands over the water and prayed to the Lord: “O Lord God, give a sign that here Pontius Pilate, who condemned your only begotten Son, has gone down into the pit.”

21/ As Paul was speaking, there came a great earthquake and the sign of the Cross was formed upon the lake.

22/ A Voice came from heaven saying, “Even Pilate has escaped the wrath to come, because he washed his hands before the crowd at the blood shedding of Jesus.”

23/ When therefore, Paul and those who were with him, saw the earthquake and heard the Voice, they glorified God and were mightily strengthened in spirit.

24/ They journeyed on and came to Mt Julius, [the Julian Alps, now the Dolomites] where there stood two pillars; right and left, erected by Caesar Augustus,

25/ Then Paul filled with the Holy Spirit, stood between those two pillars and said, “Men and brethren, these stones you see here shall testify of my travels to here and I say with certainty that they will remain until the outpouring of the Spirit onto all nations and the way, [the Gospel] will not be hindered throughout all generations.”

26/ They went forth and come to Illyricum, [the Balkan area; Romans 15:19] where they prospered and had peace, as grace was found in all the churches.

I believe this Chapter was omitted because it reveals truths that God wanted to be kept hidden.

The Liturgist · Sunday at 4:31 AM

ARBITER01 said:
There's a whole plethora of material to choose from. GOD is helping me write out my own bible currently, and I'll certainly look as these books once I finish up the NT, but that will be a while yet.

I’m sorry, He’s doing what now?

Free2bHeretical4Him! · Sunday at 6:55 AM

The Liturgist said:
I’m sorry, He’s doing what now?

lol … I think, at least it is my impression, he is referring to translation, not revelation. At least that is how, “GOD is helping me write out my own bible currently,” read to me. Dunno? Shrugggg …

ARBITER01 · Sunday at 7:02 AM

The Liturgist said:
I’m sorry, He’s doing what now?

Exactly what I said.

I'm putting together a bible for myself and GOD is helping me do that. I'm not happy or satisfied with what bibles we have to choose from, so I'm making my own. It's really not that hard to do either with all the material available now.

ViaCrucis · Sunday at 11:06 AM

ARBITER01 said:
Exactly what I said.

I'm putting together a bible for myself and GOD is helping me do that. I'm not happy or satisfied with what bibles we have to choose from, so I'm making my own. It's really not that hard to do either with all the material available now.

Dear Holy Spirit, Life-Giver who proceeds from the Father and who calls us, invites us, and brings us ever-toward Christ and keeps us in faith. Drive out the darkness, and silence every demonic spirit that lies. Burn away fleshly desire, create new desire that hungers for truth and righteousness. May every lying spirit, every spirit of error, and every device of Satan be halted, every nasty plan that old snake devises be burned to ashes in the fire of Your holy light. Every lying voice, every deceptive whisper, every haunting shadow be put away as You bring and restore sight, and hearing, and true faith. Bring illumination to minds under the poison of error. Bring peace to the weary soul that needs confidence in the Gospel. Bring forth fruit, and the joy of salvation, and happiness and satisfaction that is found only in truth, in justice, in peace, in You. O God who delivers us from Satan's snare, who rescues us from the jaws of death, who has put away every sin by nailing it to the Cross of Christ who suffered and died for us, and who rose, and is seated at the right hand of God the Father become Refuge and Delight. Let us delight only in You. Send Your angels to guard us. Keep us always in the prayers of Your saints. Surround us with Your grace, guide us with Your mercy, love us until the end as You are the God of faithful promises.

In the Name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

ARBITER01 · Sunday at 11:49 AM

ViaCrucis said:
Dear Holy Spirit, Life-Giver who proceeds from the Father and who calls us, invites us, and brings us ever-toward Christ and keeps us in faith. Drive out the darkness, and silence every demonic spirit that lies. Burn away fleshly desire, create new desire that hungers for truth and righteousness. May every lying spirit, every spirit of error, and every device of Satan be halted, every nasty plan that old snake devises be burned to ashes in the fire of Your holy light. Every lying voice, every deceptive whisper, every haunting shadow be put away as You bring and restore sight, and hearing, and true faith. Bring illumination to minds under the poison of error. Bring peace to the weary soul that needs confidence in the Gospel. Bring forth fruit, and the joy of salvation, and happiness and satisfaction that is found only in truth, in justice, in peace, in You. O God who delivers us from Satan's snare, who rescues us from the jaws of death, who has put away every sin by nailing it to the Cross of Christ who suffered and died for us, and who rose, and is seated at the right hand of God the Father become Refuge and Delight. Let us delight only in You. Send Your angels to guard us. Keep us always in the prayers of Your saints. Surround us with Your grace, guide us with Your mercy, love us until the end as You are the God of faithful promises.

In the Name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

Lol,.....

You don't have to worry, it's a bible for me, not you.

PS,..... if that is a prayer, it's pretty pathetic. Do better.

JSRG · Sunday at 2:33 PM

keras said:
Here is a NT text omitted from our Bibles.
Acts of the Apostles. The missing Chapter 29:

230 years ago, this missing chapter of the Book of Acts, written in the same Greek as the rest of the New Testament, was found in the archives of the Sultan, in Istanbul by the Frenchman; C.S. Sonnini. It was translated and printed in 1801.

There are other proofs of Pauls visit to Britain, in the writings of the Early Church Fathers and in many oral traditions of England.

Note that in the last two verses of Acts 28:30-31, Paul was free in Rome and he stayed there for two full years. Then......nothing more?

The Bible does not tell us the time and manner of Paul’s death, but we can be sure, he didn’t just retire and tend his garden! If he was beheaded by Nero, as some speculate, surely the Bible would have told us that. Anyway beheading wasn’t Nero’s style. No; Acts infers a departure from Rome....to where?

Acts of the Apostles 29:1 And Paul full of the blessings of Christ and abounding in the Spirit, departed out of Rome, determining to go to Spain, for he had for a long time purposed to go there and was minded also to go from there into Britain.

2/ For he had heard in Phoenicia that certain of the children of Israel, at the time of the Assyrian captivity, had escaped by sea to ‘the isles afar off’, as spoken by the prophet, [Jeremiah 31:10] and called by the Romans, Britain.

3/ As the Lord Commanded, the Gospel was to be preached to the Gentiles and to the lost sheep of the House of Israel. Matthew 15:24

4/ And no man hindered Paul, for he testified boldly of Jesus before the Tribunes and among the people. He took with him certain of the brethren who were with him in Rome. They took ship at Ostium and having the winds fair, were brought safely into a port of Spain.

5/ Many people gathered from the towns and the hill country, for they had heard of the conversion of Paul and the many miracles he had done.

6/ Paul preached mightily in Spain and a great multitude believed and became Christian, for they perceived that he was an Apostle sent by God.

7/ Then Paul and his company departed out of Spain, finding a ship in Armorica sailing to Britain, they went on it and passing along the south coast arrived in a port called Raphinus. [Portsmouth]

8/ Now when it was noised abroad that the Apostle had landed, great multitudes of the inhabitants met him and they treated Paul courteously as he entered their town by the East gate and lodged in the home of a Hebrew, one of his own kin. Romans 16:13

9/ Then they travelled to the main town of Britain, [Londinium] Paul stood upon Mount Lud, [Ludgate hill, where St Pauls Cathedral now stands] and the crowds thronged in Broadway as he preached Christ to them and many believed the Word and the Testimony of Jesus.

10/ In the evening the holy Ghost fell upon Paul and he prophesied, saying: ‘Behold, in the last days the God of peace shall dwell in this place and the citizens shall be numbered, then in the seventh numbering of the people, their eyes shall be opened and the glory of their inheritance will shine forth before them. Nations shall come up to worship on the mount that testifies to the patience and longsuffering of the servants of the Lord’.

11/ And in the latter days, new tidings of the Gospel shall issue forth out of Jerusalem and the hearts of the people will rejoice. Behold fountains will be opened and there will be no more plagues.

12/ In those days there shall be wars and rumours of wars and a king shall rise up, his Sword will be the healing of the nations, his Peace-making shall abide and the glory of his kingdom a wonder to the world. [The Millennium Kingdom of Jesus]

13/ Then some of the Druids came to Paul privately and showed to Paul by their rites and ceremonies that they were descended from Israel, who had escaped from their bondage in the land of Egypt. The Apostle believed them and he gave them the kiss of peace.

13/ Paul stayed in his lodging for three months, preaching the Gospel continually and confirming those in the faith.

15/ After this Paul and his friends sailed from there to Atium in Gaul. [France]

16/ There Paul preached in the Roman garrisons and among the people, exhorting all to repent and to confess their sins.

17/ There came to him some of the Belgae, [North Europeans] to enquire of him about this new doctrine and about the man Jesus. Paul opened his heart to them and told them all that had befallen him and how Christ Jesus had come into the world to save sinners. They departed, pondering among themselves the things they had heard.

18/ After much preaching and toil, Paul and his labourers passed into Helvetia, [Switzerland] and came to Mount Pontius Pilate, where he who had condemned Jesus had dashed himself down headlong, so perishing miserably.

19/ Then a torrent gushed out of the mountain and washed his broken body into a lake.

20/ Paul stretched forth his hands over the water and prayed to the Lord: “O Lord God, give a sign that here Pontius Pilate, who condemned your only begotten Son, has gone down into the pit.”

21/ As Paul was speaking, there came a great earthquake and the sign of the Cross was formed upon the lake.

22/ A Voice came from heaven saying, “Even Pilate has escaped the wrath to come, because he washed his hands before the crowd at the blood shedding of Jesus.”

23/ When therefore, Paul and those who were with him, saw the earthquake and heard the Voice, they glorified God and were mightily strengthened in spirit.

24/ They journeyed on and came to Mt Julius, [the Julian Alps, now the Dolomites] where there stood two pillars; right and left, erected by Caesar Augustus,

25/ Then Paul filled with the Holy Spirit, stood between those two pillars and said, “Men and brethren, these stones you see here shall testify of my travels to here and I say with certainty that they will remain until the outpouring of the Spirit onto all nations and the way, [the Gospel] will not be hindered throughout all generations.”

26/ They went forth and come to Illyricum, [the Balkan area; Romans 15:19] where they prospered and had peace, as grace was found in all the churches.

I believe this Chapter was omitted because it reveals truths that God wanted to be kept hidden.

I am not sure as to whether this was meant seriously or satirically--but in regards to the question of why Acts ends with Paul under house arrest without going any further, one frequently suggested answer, which I think is likely the right one, is simply that's because Acts was written at that point. Of course Luke isn't going to write further, because the events hadn't happened yet.

As for this "Acts Chapter 29", this by all appearances is a forgery from the 19th/18th centuries. As is explained here (note especially the bolded):

Edgar J. Goodspeed, Strange New Gospels. Chicago: University of Chicago Press (1931), v+110pp.

This "long-lost chapter of the Acts of the Apostles, containing the account of Paul's journey in Spain and Britain" is said by a recent publisher of it, Mr. T. G. Cole, to have been translated by the oriental traveler, C. S. Sonnini, from a "Greek manuscript found in the Archives at Constantinople, and presented to him by the Sultan Abdoul Achmet." Sonnini's translation, we are further informed, "was found interleaved in a copy of Sonnini's "Travels in Turkey and Greece," and purchased at the sale of the library and effects of the late Right Hon. Sir John Newport, Bart., in Ireland, . . . . in whose possession it had been for more than thirty years, with a copy of the firman of the Sultan of Turkey, granting to C. S. Sonnini permission to travel in all parts of the Ottoman dominions."

The copy of Sonnini's "Travels" in which it was found was an English translation, printed in London in 1801, under the title, "Travels in Turkey and Greece Undertaken by Order of Louis XVI, and with the Authority of the Ottoman Court." The original French edition appeared in Paris in the same year, but contains no allusion to any such gift from the Sultan. The English text of the new chapter of Acts is said to have been published by Stevenson in London in 1871. I have found no earlier date given for it.

...

We have already seen, in discussing the "Confession of Pontius Pilate," that the story of his suicide on Mount Pilatus is a late legend. The researches of General Wallace and President Angell at Constantinople have shown that no such manuscripts as are here implied are known in the libraries there. On the other hand no manuscript of the Acts in Greek or any other tongue contains the chapter, and the conclusion is unavoidable that it was composed to support the British-Israel movement which circulates it. The testimony of the Druids in verse 13, and Paul's prophecy of St. Paul's Cathedral and of the seventh British census of 1861, and the rise of the British-Israel movement soon after, verse 10, show this interest unmistakably.

That the original Greek of this chapter was given to Sonnini by the Sultan has no support from Sonnini's book of travels, according to which he did not even see the Sultan, but secured his permission to travel, through others.

The fantastic legend that the Lake of Lucerne assumed its present shape, faintly suggesting a crucifix, on the occasion of Paul's visit there (p. 21) is altogether unlike the writer of Acts, especially the part of his work that deals with Paul.

The reference to Pilate's washing his hands at the time of Jesus' trial (vs. 22) would be strangely out of place in Acts, the author of which does not mention it in his account of the trial (Luke 23). The words "men and brethren" (vs. 25) reflect an old mistranslation of a Greek phrase in Acts, now generally corrected; and the expression "Verily I say," here put (vs. 25) into the mouth of Paul, is one never used by Luke, and rigidly reserved by Matthew and John ("Verily, verily I say") for Jesus alone. To use it of Paul is most unlike the New Testament.

In view of its interest in the British census of 1861 (vs. 10), and the popularity given to ideas of this kind by the work of Piazzi Smyth in the sixties of the last century, it is probable that this curious chapter was written not long before its publication in 1871.

There appears little reason to consider this as anything but a forgery made up by someone in the "British Israel" movement (as explained further in the linked page, a group largely starting in the 19th century that tried to claim the British were descendants of lost tribes of Israelites) to try to give credence to their beliefs.

ViaCrucis · Sunday at 7:19 PM

ARBITER01 said:
it's a bible for me, not you.

That's a nonsense idea.

What you are advocating for is open rebellion against your Creator and Lord.

Jesus Christ is Lord. Not you.

There's no such thing as a Bible for you, or a Bible for me.

There's the Bible. Period. We can debate all day long about the Canon, but to deny the Canon conceptually is nothing more than a satanic farce that denies the objectivity of Divine Truth as the standard which all who dream to call themselves Christians must be measured against. You'll find that the fruit the serpent offers you will not bring you wisdom, but death. Repent and return to your Father who loves you, cling to Christ, and hear the voice of the Spirit who calls you to salvation..

ARBITER01 · Sunday at 8:41 PM

ViaCrucis said:
That's a nonsense idea.

What you are advocating for is open rebellion against your Creator and Lord.

Jesus Christ is Lord. Not you.

There's no such thing as a Bible for you, or a Bible for me.

There's the Bible. Period. We can debate all day long about the Canon, but to deny the Canon conceptually is nothing more than a satanic farce that denies the objectivity of Divine Truth as the standard which all who dream to call themselves Christians must be measured against. You'll find that the fruit the serpent offers you will not bring you wisdom, but death. Repent and return to your Father who loves you, cling to Christ, and hear the voice of the Spirit who calls you to salvation..

That's a little dramatic.

What are you going to do,... argue with me over the internet?

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